Dubai spa owners have never heard of Sunanda

Pushkar is believed to have flown back to Dubai on Wednesday as the heat surrounding her “free” shareholdings in Rendezvous Sports World, the consortium which owns the Kochi IPL cricket team, and her intimate association with Tharoor got too intense.
Several spa owners Deccan Herald spoke to in the Emirate city on Thursday had not even heard of her or any spa she likely runs there. This has brought into question the hype over Pushkar’s claim that she has “extensive international experience as a business executive, marketing manager and entrepreneur”.

In an email message to queries from Deccan Herald, a spokesman for Tecom Investments, a Dubai-based property investment company Pushkar worked for, said: “Her employment with TECOM Investments began in 2005 and that she was employed as a Sales Manager when she left TECOM Investments’ employment in mid-March of this year”.

She was also not involved in clinching any major deals for TECOM which said in the statement that the neither the firm, nor its parent company, Dubai Holding, have any interest or financial stake in the Kochi IPL team”.

What is, perhaps, more revealing is that at least three lady spa owners Deccan Herald spoke to had never heard of Pushkar or her spa. Two well known spa owners – one of Pakistani origin and another of African origin – said the name Sunanda Pushkar was not known to them either as a spa owner or even as a Dubai socialite.

“I have never heard that name before,” the Pakistani lady insisted. Enquiries with some other spas in and around Sheikh Zayed Road, where Pushkar lived, did not throw up much, indicating that she never owned a health club, or even if she did, it was not well known.

It is believed that Pushkar has been a resident of Dubai for the past 10 years, prior to which she lived in Canada where she worked for an IT company.

 PIL against Tharoor withdrawn
A lawyer, who had filed a PIL seeking a direction from the Supreme Court for a CBI probe into Union Minister Shashi Tharoor’s alleged proxy stake in the Kochi IPL franchisee, on Thursday, withdrew his petition claiming that he would move the Delhi High Court, reports DHNS from New Delhi.

Advocate Ajay K Agrawal withdrew his petition after a bench headed by Justice S H Kapadia declined his plea for an early hearing in the matter. Agrawal later claimed that he had filed a similar PIL before the Delhi High Court seeking a CBI probe against Tharoor in Kochi IPL team auction.